Essay Series Can the European Union Deliver for Working People?
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Essay Series Can the European Union deliver for working people? John Cryer MP Billy Hayes Carolyn Jones Jonathan Michie Clare Moody Claude Moraes MEP April 2014 Authors John Cryer MP John is the Labour Member of Parliament for Leyton and Wanstead. Billy Hayes Billy is the General Secretary of the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU). Carolyn Jones Carolyn is Director of the Institute of Employment Rights (IER). Professor Jonathan Michie Jonathan is Professor of Innovation & Knowledge Exchange at the University of Oxford, where he is Director of the Department for Continuing Education and President of Kellogg College. Clare Moody Clare is a Unite official and is the lead candidate for Labour in the European elections in the South West. She also had a lead role in the campaign to establish the Agency Workers’ Directive. Claude Moraes MEP Claude is a Labour Member of the European Parliament for London and Deputy Leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party (EPLP). Photo credit for John Cryer: Peter Arkel The views expressed in this paper do not represent the collective views of the Centre for Labour and Social Studies (Class), but only the views of the authors. The responsibility of Class is limited to approving this publication as worthy of consideration by the labour movement. 2 Can the European Union deliver for working people? Can the European Union deliver for working people? As the European Elections approach, the media spotlight is increasingly focussing in on Europe and, more specifically, the European Union. On the left of the British political spectrum, the EU takes its place as the ultimate “Marmite” issue and can often be heard being discussed with equal amounts of respect and disdain. It remains revered by some as a beacon of international cooperation, with progressive principles at its heart and yet, rejected by others as an anti-democratic institution which harvests the very neoliberal agenda, those of us on the left in this country have had to fight so hard against. In light of this, Class set out to make a weighty, yet balanced, contribution to the debate. With this in mind, we asked six key figures from across the labour and trade union movement, with differing attitudes to the EU, the same question – “Can the European Union deliver for working people?” – and have compiled their responses in this publication. Can the European Union deliver for working people? 3 Yes, the European Union can deliver for working people British governments have since that time been the most reluctant, and right-wing, participants in the European project. The establishment’s nostalgia for empire, and an over-inflated military policy, continued to poison social attitudes towards the EU. This has had an impact upon UK policy-making, even after joining the EU. Most European governments were seeking closer cooperation. Yet successive British governments were anxious and ambiguous about the EU, shaping the course of public opinion in the process. At the same time British governments pioneered the liberalisation and privatisation agenda. They constantly pushed for the Billy Hayes adoption of such programmes by the European Commission and European Since the onset of the great economic Parliament. For the most part, the EU was stagnation in 2008, it is clear that the more progressive on issues like employment European Union (EU) has lost its attraction rights and social legislation- embracing the for many people in Britain. Lord Ashcroft's neoliberal agenda later, and more poll of 20,000 people, in March 2014, showed reluctantly, than British governments, who a split of four in ten wishing Britain to stay in remained under the sway of US politicians the EU, and four in ten wishing Britain to and political economists. leave. One in five said they didn’t know.¹ It The crash and stagnation since 2008 seems that the public is more confused about changed that. The IMF reinforced all the Europe than ever. In these circumstances it is tendencies of the European Commission and vital that the labour and progressive European Central Bank to embrace austerity movement, defends the case for our positive as the sole solution. In these circumstances, engagement with the EU. there seem few arguments for greater This is particularly important in the UK. engagement with the EU. But addressing the Historically, up to the 1950s, British foreign extent of the economic problems requires policy was premised on keeping Europe coordinated, expansionary policies from all divided, with no single power being allowed the governments in Europe. to challenge Britain's world role. The decline There will be no sustained economic of empire led many in ruling circles to favour recovery without avoiding competitive a strategic alliance with the US as a devaluations, protectionism and national substitute. By the 1970s it was clear how this autarky. Now, more than ever, we need was failing to stem the decline of British national governments in Europe to work power and influence. closely together to solve common economic 4 Can the European Union deliver for working people? problems. economies of the BRICS countries, and the The scale of the problem is daunting. rest of the developing world. 26 million Europeans are not working, 10 Multiculturalism is a practical aid to million more than in 2008. Of these, 7.5 such engagement, where the EU’s diversity million are young people out of work, out of allows it to speak to new markets using their education, and out of training. Living own language. The racists threaten not just standards are collapsing, with 120 million national domestic harmony, but also our long Europeans living in, or at the risk of, poverty. -term economic welfare. The European TUC estimates that €250 billion In the current international political invested over 10 years would create 11 situation, it is easy to despair of social million new jobs.² Governments across progress being possible at all. Yet Europe could provide this as public coordination is possible across the EU both in investment, which would raise living unions and parties. It is then not too much of standards in every country. a stretch to achieve it between governments. Of course, while austerity is being Left and progressive parties in both the sustained at an EU, and a national level, such Party of European Socialists and the GUE/ solutions will not be embraced. But, arguably, NGL grouping, inside the European the dominance of neoliberalism in EU Parliament, remain focal points for institutions is in opposition to the key campaigns and policy discussions at a principles of the European Treaty. In European level. particular, the Treaty’s principles to promote The ETUC, and the various company better living conditions and social protections European Works councils, are bodies which have been ignored by the European allow unions to cooperate across national Commission in applying the deflationary borders in the EU in pursuit of more policies of the IMF and European Central expansionary economic policy, and for the Bank. specific industrial goals of unions. The contribution made by trade unions There are, and have been, many and the left parties needs to be to promote campaigns across Europe which have an alternative to austerity at both the involved activists from different countries. national and EU-wide level. Austerity is also These include, the struggle for peace and promoting an international reaction which against imperialist wars; the defence of the needs to be fought. That reaction takes the environment and for tackling climate change; form of a vicious hostility to migrant workers, and opposition to the growth of racist and and ethnic minorities– particularly Muslims fascist forces. and the Roma. This new search for Alongside these, we have seen the scapegoats runs in the opposite direction to a emergence of activists in Spain, Greece and multinational, multicultural Europe. elsewhere who stand up for those being The racist wave, to which no European impoverished by the impact of austerity. country appears immune, is not only morally Even in Britain we have some experiences of wrong in principle. It also threatens to turn the new movements such as Occupy. In the the EU, and the nation states, inwards when coming years we can expect new creative the solution to economic stagnation is found initiatives from young activists against the in a more outward looking policy. The EU’s current squeeze on living standards. There is future has to lie with the fast growing nothing to suggest that they will want to do Can the European Union deliver for working people? 5 anything other than co-operate at an international level. The future of the EU is in the hands of the people of Europe. We can let it break up in a mass of damaged and embittered politics. Or, we can fight to defend the principle of pan-European cooperation on the decisive issues facing the peoples of Europe. Nothing is guaranteed - it all depends on the activity of people like us across the EU. If we simply allow the monopolies, arms dealers, financiers, landlords, and trans- national companies to set the agenda then the outlook is indeed bleak. But a better Europe can be forged by the left in Britain and the EU demanding change, and organising for it across the EU. References ¹ Lord Ashcroft (2014) Europe on Trial http:// lordashcroftpolls.com/2014/03/europe-trial ² ETUC (2014) Falling wages casts doubt on recovery warn trade unions http://www.etuc.org/press/falling- wages-casts-doubt-recovery-warn-trade- unions#.UzqehGfz2M1 6 Can the European Union deliver for working people? Yes, the European Union can deliver for working people Greece, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Here in the UK, UKIP are currently occupying the populist anti- European Union right-wing role much to the chagrin of Tory Eurosceptics who have been burning the Thatcherite flame ever since she made her 1988 Bruges speech.